Riley as the starting QB
(Written by kencraw)
Well surprising no one who’s name isn’t Brock Mansion’s little brother (because even Brock himself saw the writing on the wall), Tedford announced that Riley will be the starter in the Maryland game.
I figured this is as good a time as ever to speak to my expectations for Riley this season.
I try really hard to be an honest assessor of the Bears, but I find myself having a hard time not being a homer for Riley this fall. Remember, I’m the same guy who, while not reaching Hydrolic Technician levels, was defensive of Longshore’s performance in 2007 and not sold on Riley after the Armed Forces bowl. I was also unsure of who I thought should start in just about every 2008 game (although the Emerald Bowl answer a lot of my unanswered questions in Riley’s favor).
Point being, I’m not naturally a Riley Homer.
But I just can’t get the feeling out of my head that this is going to be a break-through year for him. I get the feeling his mechanics are very good and what defects develop over the course of a season (it happens to every QB) will be easily corrected during practice. I get the feeling that the game slowed down A LOT for him in the off-season and he’ll make a lot of good reads. I get the feeling that he gets the progressions and when and how to know when to use his outlet options while not ignoring the big play opportunities. I get the feeling that he’s learned how to deal with defensive pressure both how to read their formations and after the snap.
But most importantly, I get the feeling that this is Riley’s team. Nobody was fooled by the off-season indecision of Tedford and every player instinctively knew who was going to be under center when the season kicked off. And this team needed that. They needed to know who their leader in the huddle was going to be.
So I’m left being a Riley Homer, or better stated, a Riley believer. If he delivers, it’s going to open up the run game for Best and this may be a very special season in Berkeley.
August 27th, 2009 at 7:04 am
Another reason for optimism about Riley is Tedford’s record of working with QB’s. He was able to improve Kyle Boller enough to get drafted. Look at Aaron Rodgers at Green Bay. Longshore’s problem was in his head — not in his technique.
Why wouldn’t Riley improve under a coach with a record of improving QB’s?
August 27th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
every year we get further removed from Justin Forsett is a little more special to me.
August 27th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
lol, Brian, your hatred of Forsett continues to crack me up. I bet you’re a big Seattle Seahawks fan now, huh? Sounds like he’s been getting a lot of touches up there.
August 28th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
i remember nfl analysts talking about how tedford screws all these qbs up with his “high arm” insistence. they all end up having to be retrained when they get to the pros. it’s kind of like little league, and the coaches who insist you have to keep your elbow up in your batting stance. it’s not where you end up at contact, and it’s not natural. it works for some. tedford insists that it works for everyone. i guess if riley’s ok with it, it’s a good thing. i just want to see him be allowed to roll out more and get moving. tedford wasted his talent in that regard, the last 2 years, insisting that he stay in the pocket. maybe he’s finally losing some of his stubbornness. he’ll say he can let him loose now because he has a better grasp of the offense. whatever. nobody that’s gone through the tedford system has amounted to much in the nfl, at qb. boller was laughable, but they continued to sign him because they only needed 2 points to win. rodgers may prove himself worthy, but we’ll see. go bears.
August 29th, 2009 at 6:50 am
What’s nice about the “can Tedford coach QB’s” argument is that in 2009 we’ll get an answer.
Aaron Rodgers will start for his 2nd year at Green Bay and Riley will start for the Bears. By January we’ll have an answer.
If Rodgers proves to be a successful NFL QB and if Riley can improve and deliver for Cal then the answer will be “Yes”.